DoD News

News Article

One Marine, Two Soldiers Die in Iraq

American Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON, Jan. 27, 2005  A Marine was killed in action south of Baghdad and a soldier died from a gunshot wound today, according to military officials in Iraq. A roadside bomb explosion killed another soldier Jan. 26.

Four other Marines were wounded in today's incident while they were conducting security and stability operations in Babil province. The soldier who died was a member of the Army's 1st Infantry Division and was on Forward Operating Base Normandy.

An improvised-explosive-device attack Jan. 26 in Baghdad killed the other soldier and wounded two more. They were assigned to Task Force Baghdad.

The servicemembers' names are being withheld until next of kin are notified.

In other action, Iraqi Army troops in western Baghdad stopped a car with small- arms fire that was speeding toward their checkpoint today, wounding the driver. A Task Force Baghdad explosive ordnance team called in found 12 artillery rounds of various calibers and three plunger switches.

The driver of the vehicle received medical treatment and remains in custody for further questioning.

Members of the Army's 1st Brigade, 25th Infantry Division (Stryker Brigade Combat Team), detained four people today suspected of anti-Iraqi activity in western Mosul in continuing operations to ensure security for Sunday's elections.

Troops from the 10th Mountain Division's 2nd Brigade Combat Team thwarted an apparent kidnapping of eight Iraqis Jan. 26 in western Baghdad. During a patrol in the Khadamiyah district, the soldiers stopped a suspicious-looking vehicle and found three Iraqis bound and gagged. The victims included a sheik and an administrator from the Iraqi Ministry of Oil.

The soldiers detained five suspects, who possessed four pistols, an AK-47 assault rifle and a submachine gun outfitted with a silencer.